The Strange Situation experiment

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The different types of attachments were first identified in a set of experiments carried out in the 1960s and 1970s by Mary Ainsworth. These studies involved observing babies who had been placed in situations where they were either left alone or with another person. If the baby was left in a strange situation, she would cry and show signs of discomfort, such as clinging to her mother. If the baby was only momentarily exposed to a stranger, he might begin to cry if he was not quickly calmed down by being picked up and cuddled. However, if the baby was given a chance to spend some time with someone else before being reunited with his mother, he would settle down and calm down much faster. From this Ainsworth derived the three basic attachment styles.

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